Failing Light
by Duce-Gemini
Summary: A young initiate witnesess one of the final steps in Xanatos's decent into darkness...


Disclaimer: I own Kindra and Faylin, nothing else, cause if I owned Xanatos...he wouldn't be dead! (Sorry, can you tell I really, really don't agree with that decision?)  
  
Author's Note: Okay! I think I finally got this uploaded right, blasted formatting! Anyways, this is a one shot story, so what you see is what you get. It's a little old, so it's probably not as good as some of my more recent stuff, however I liked it enough that I thought you guys might enjoy it too.  
  
Kindra was only a three year old initiate, but she was about to witness something that not even master Yoda could see. She wandered the empty halls of the temple, drawn toward something she did not understand. The sun had set long ago, and she should have been asleep in the safety of the Cresh. But for some reason, she felt that she should follow the speechless voice inside that told her to go. So she left, dressed in an over-sized shirt and with her blanket draped about her small shoulders.  
  
Unfortunately Kindra was lost, for she had never been in this part of the temple before. She hurried forward though when she heard voices. She almost ran into the room, but the voice inside told her to stop. In a moment she saw why. Two figures stood in the center of the darkened room, both dressed in Jedi garb.  
  
One was a huge Bothan, some of his dark fur pleated into a Padawan braid. There was nothing interesting about the way he was dressed, for he looked exactly like any other Padawan. The other being however, was quite different. He had long black hair and midnight blue eyes that glinted strangely in the darkness. Instead of the customary shades of brown, his tunic was grey and his boots black. At first Kindra thought that he was a Knight, but when he turned, she could see a long braid laying across his shoulder.  
  
Stepping into the shadows by the door, Kindra watched as the two Padawans circled each other, arguing in low, angry voices.  
  
"How dare you insult me!? Xanatos, you are a disgrace to your master and the order!" hissed the Bothan.  
  
"Please Faylin, you know you are no match for me with a lightsaber. Let us settle our disagreement now. And this time, your Master isn't here to save you!" said Xanatos as he called a training saber to his hand. Faylin did the same, and charged at Xanatos, swinging his blade skillfully.  
  
It was an amazing display of saber skills for Kindra who had not seen a lightsaber duel before. Xanatos flipped backwards over Faylin's head, landing a stinging blow to his opponents shoulder. Twirling, lunging, and slashing, the two opponents clashed, their lightsabers sizzling angrily. Faylin struck at Xanatos's feet, causing him to leap above the blow. The Bothan quickly brought his blade up in a sweeping arc that slashed Xanatos across the chest. Xanatos landed heavily, winded from the blow.  
  
"Surrender Xanatos!" said Faylin, panting with exhaustion. At that a strange light came into Xanatos's eyes, and they flared with a hidden power.  
  
"This contest is far from over!" With that he leapt at Faylin, snarling like a wild beast. Their blades clashed time after time, but the large Bothan was tiering, and Xanatos knew it. Then as if he had just begun to fight, Xanatos attacked with a new intensity, making their previous clashes look like an initiates duel.   
  
Faylin was losing strength, and was severely burned from all the hits Xanatos had landed. He weakly raised his blade to defend himself, but he felt it ripped from his hand.  
  
"You are mine!" snarled Xanatos, a feral grin spreading across his face.  
  
From the shadows, Kindra watched in horror, for she had seen something that no one else could. Something that only the innocent heart of a child could see. For the innocence of a child can see through all shrouds of deception and deceit. She saw a dark shadow forming around Xanatos. It swirled about him, clinging to him and cloaking him in a shroud of darkness. And in the depths of his midnight eyes, she saw a raging fire of wrath, and greed. Faylin could not see what Kindra did, but he felt it all the same, and unlike the young girl, he knew exactly what it was.  
  
"Xanatos, let go of your anger, the dark side is taking hold of you!" pleaded Flayin as Xanatos advanced upon his beaten opponent.  
  
"The dark side?! What have I to fear of the dark? Only the weak fall prey to it, and I am not weak!." Xanatos knocked Faylin to the floor, beating him mercilislly with the lightsaber hilt. Kindra shut her eyes against the blows that kept raining down on the poor Bothan, and closed her ears to his pleas for mercy, and screams of pain.   
  
Again and again, Xanatos brought the hilt of the lightsaber down upon his opponent, smiling maliciously as he did so. This power that coursed through his veins, why had it ever been forbidden to him, it was his to control, as limitless as his anger and as powerful as his wrath. He felt as if he could do anything, defeat anyone. In his cruel enjoyment of this new intoxicating power, he failed to sense that he had already crossed the line and was plunging into darkness. The cold tendrils of the Dark Side were wrapping themselves more tightly about him every second. Soon, it would have captured another Jedi. This one however, was different from the others though, powerful beyond belief, perhaps even powerful enough to bend even it's power to his will. It hadn't encountered one so devious and cunning in many, many years, and it couldn't wait to feed off of him. Oh yes, it gave the beings it ensnared great power, but it also ate away at their bodies and their minds. The pitiful boy would think that he was using the power, when in fact, It was using him.  
  
Kindra shuddered as she heard a sickening crack, and looked up, startled to see the Bothan's head covered in blood, his body limp. She watched as Xanatos stepped back, horrified for a moment at what he had done. He quickly reached down and felt for a pulse, relief flitting across his face for the briefest of moments. Faylin was not dead, simply unconscious. Kindra could see the shadows falling from Xanatos as the Dark Side lost it's control over his heart and mind. He stood there for several minutes, swaying back and forth, shaking all over.   
  
Suddenly, his head jerked up, and his eyes began to scan the shadows. Kindra pulled back fearfully, afraid that she would be discovered. Xanatos walked straight toward her, and crouched in front of her.   
  
"Well hello there, what are you doing back there," asked Xanatos, his voice thick with kindness. All he could see in the darkness were two pale blue eyes set in a chubby round face. Those eyes were afraid and he could feel the fear dripping from the her, and in some depraved, sinister way, he liked it. Something inside of him leapt with evil joy as it lapped up the child's fright like sweet nectar.  
  
Shaking himself, he shook off the feeling of unrest that was growing within him. Gently he reached into the shadows, but stopped in surprise as his hand knocked against a Force shield. Kindra struggled valiantly to hold her little force bubble together, keeping the mad' Padawan away from her. Xanatos laughed slightly at the young girl's attempt to manipulate the Force, and reached out, easily popping her bubble. "Come now, it's alright, you may come out. What's your name?"  
  
Kindra, like many telepaths, hadn't learned to talk yet. With hundreds of voices constantly yammering away inside her mind, all of them screeching in a different language, it was very hard for her to figure out which language she should speak. Whenever she tried to speak it would come out in five or six different languages, and the other children would laugh at her. She became so embarrassed, that she just stopped trying to speak at all, and many thought that she was a mute.  
  
"It's alright, come on out." Kindra wanted to believe him, to run into his arms and have him tell her that it was all a bad dream. Xanatos was not evil looking, in fact he had a rather nice looking face. His voice was smooth and silky, a voice that you would want to believe in, and do anything it said. However, she could still see the Shadow, lurking in the depths of his eyes, and the way he beat the other Padawan flashed before her.  
  
Sensing that the girl was not coming out of her own accord, Xanatos put gentle pressure on her young mind. She shouldn't have been able to resist his mind trick, but she did. When Kindra felt his mind brush against her's, she panicked, and gave Xanatos a mental slap. He sat back quickly on his heels, surprised at the control that one so young had. His surprise quickly turned to anger though. Lashing out, he pushed against Kindra's mind painfully, causing the young girl to weep.  
  
"Come out of there you little brat!" he hissed, jerking Kindra out by her collar. He held her very close to his face, her feet dangling above the floor. "What did you see wench?! What did you see!!?" He shook Kindra roughly, his anger building with every second. Dropping the child to the ground, Xanatos paced back and forth, an uncontrollable rage possessing him. He felt as if he wanted to kill, to wring that little wretch's neck and be done with her. But Xanatos knew he couldn't do that. So he slammed his fist into the wall to vent his frustration, breaking two knuckles, but leaving a deep pockmark in the wall. He became oblivious to the pain however, when the girl finally answered his question.  
  
"Darkness," whispered Kindra shakily. She didn't know if she had the right language or not, but she knew if she didn't say something, this mad man was going to hurt her. Xanatos whirled on her, his eyes blazing.  
  
"What do you mean, darkness?" he asked angrily, but even as he asked it, he knew the answer. He paced slowly, trying to contain his emotions. "You didn't see anything here tonight, do you understand? This never happened!" Kindra nodded her head up and down vigorously. "Alright, lets get you back to the Cresh before someone misses you," said Xanatos, almost all traces of his former rage had disappeared, or been hidden. Reluctantly, Kindra took his hand, and allowed him to lead her away. They walked through the Temple for a long time, the whole time, Kindra felt as if they were being watched. Suddenly a very large man rounded the corner in front of them, startling the little girl.  
  
"There you are Padawan. I was wondering where you had gone to," said the man, laying a fond hand on Xanatos's shoulder. "And who is this?"  
  
"I don't know, I found her wandering around in the training rooms. She doesn't speak much." Qui-gon knelt down in front of the little girl, and smiled.  
  
"How are you little one?" he asked kindly. Kindra pulled back into Xanatos, at first afraid of the huge man in front of her. Then however, she saw that he was nothing like the man she was clinging to, and rushed into the huge man's arms. Qui-gon was very surprised, especially when the little girl started to shiver, her eyes wide and brimming with tears. "What happened to her Padawan? She seems terrified of something."  
  
"I don't know. I suppose she was just lost and frightened," said Xanatos cooly.  
  
"Well we should get her back to the Cresh. There, there young one, everything is all right now." Kindra snuggled in against Qui-gon's shoulder, sighing contentedly. She looked up startled however, when she saw something in the shadows. To her eyes, it was a shadow itself, hiding in the darkness. With every step its form changed, sliding smoothly from one horrible shape to the next. Each appeared to have leapt from the pit, hell hounds each and every one. The most terrifying thing about it however was its eyes. The gleamed wickedly in the darkness, glowing with a thousand tormented souls that it had devoured. The twin pools of blood slowly turned on her, causing a chill to creep up her spine. It gazed directly into her eyes, and she felt bare before it, as if it could see into her very soul. The Shadow's red eyes gleamed with an insatiable lust and hunger, and its malice hung about it like wisps of sulphurous smoke.  
  
The dark creature looked up at the small girl, at once sensing her pathetically small Force signature. When it looked on her though, it pulled back in pain, its eyes burned by the brilliance of light that surrounded her. She was as light and shining as it was dark and dim. This one was too young, not tainted enough. Vainly it searched for the dark seed, the evil that dwelt in every heart. Though it could not bare to look upon her brightness any longer, it knew that the darkness was there, though it was nearly eclipsed. Snarling with twisted pleasure it resigned itself to wait. If the child slipped up even once, it would pounce on her, and drag her into the pit. Until then, the older one would more than do to satisfy its insatiable hunger.  
  
Kindra looked fearfully at the creature, and saw it draw back as it glared at her, its depraved eyes promising her that if she strayed down its path, none could save her. Then it turned from her, following along behind Xanatos, stalking him like a predator does it's prey. Kindra knew that this darkness would claim Xanatos one day, for she could already see the reflection of its lust filled eyes, mirrored in Xanatos's midnight ones.  
  
No one ever found out what happened that night. Faylin was found unconciouss in the training room, badly beaten. The injuries to his head were so severe that when he came to, the poor Bothan could remember nothing of what had happened. The healers hoped that his memory would eventually come back once the wounds had healed and he was given time to recover. Unfourtunately, if the memories of that horrible night had been locked somewhere within in his mind, they were never given a chance to be revealed. Several months after the incident, the large Bothan was killed on a mission, giving his life to save those of five small children.  
  
Xanatos was of course questioned if he had seen anything that night when he was out wandering the halls. He innocently replied that he had seen nothing, and was just as mystified as to what had happened as everyone else. As always, his master believed him, stubbornly defending him against any who would question his word. However, not all believed Xanatos was telling the truth.   
  
As for Kindra, even if she could have, she dared not say a word. Even when Master Yoda himself questioned her. She did not tell him anything, but the shreds of memories that she accidentally projected were more then enough to stir the diminutive master's suspicions. He would devise a test, to see once and for all if Xanatos was truly of the light, or if he had sold his soul to the darkness. If it was as Yoda feared, then the dark side had become ever more deceptive and dangerous if it could hide so well even under the scrutiny of the Jedi Council.  
  
"Hard to detect the Dark Side is, deceitful and treacherous is it always. But if in Xanatos it resides, then I fear it has gained a most deadly ally."  
  
Author's Note: R&R please! Any suggestions or comments you may have would be most appreciated. Thanks!  
  
-Gemini 


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